NEW YORK - Andrea Dormeus has been smiling since her son’s graduation from Morehouse College.

The city school bus driver and single mother of nine has struggled to help him pay for college and was planning to work extra hours to help him get rid of his student loans.

But then something unbelievable happened. While giving his commencement speech at the Morehouse College graduation ceremony, billionaire businessman Robert Smith announced he would be paying off the student loans of the entire graduating class of 2019.  

Her son Elijah Dormeus and the other parents went wild.

“I cried for a split second and then I wiped my eyes and I was like, ‘You know what, keep speaking Robert!’” Elijah said.

Dormeus owed more than $90,000 in student loans. His mother was already working double shifts to make ends meet. Five of her children are in college and he is the first to graduate.

“I was thinking how I was going to pay the loan because I have to help my kids. One thing with my kids, nobody works. I said, ‘Let me do the job for you. All I need you to do is get an education,’” Andrea said. 

Despite this incredible surprise, it’s been a difficult journey for the family, though, especially Andrea.

From bouts of homelessness to losing her husband suddenly to a heart attack while her kids were young, Andrea has had to raise the children all alone. In fact, she didn’t know if she could afford a ticket to her son’s graduation this year.

“It was a struggle to even buy the ticket to go to Atlanta to go to the graduation,” Andrea said. “I just thank God. God is good. He always answers prayers.” 

Elijah’s good fortune didn’t end there. After graduation, he didn’t have a place to stay until he started his new job in Texas next month. But then late Monday evening news came that Morehouse College would allow him to stay on campus until then.